Like I said: he’s John McCain. And he approves this message. Which I think says all that needs to be said. But if you’d like some more analysis, here’s Joshua Micah Marshall in keeping track:

…here we have a candidate, John McCain, who is running on a record of straight talk and honorable campaigning running a campaign made up mainly of charges reporters are now more or less acknowledging are lies. But there’s precious little drawing together of the contradiction. What’s more, as everyone will acknowledge after the campaign, the McCain campaign is now pushing the caricature of Obama as a uppity young black man whose presumptuousness is displayed not only in taking on airs above his station but also in a taste for young white women.

44 Responses to “He’s John McCain, and He Approves This Message”

Sorry, dog whistle racism doesn’t work for me, but it sure works in Dumbfuckistan (just ask Harold Ford – he’s a loser, but the white sleaze bags with black candidate crap is so lame – but effective for the microcephalics).

Jeezez, that ad even got me scared, and I like black folks!
Thank gawd that tranquilized senior citizen with the vacant eyes and oblivious expression came on at the end to re-assure & remind us all that there is still a white hope in the race…

Never mind shcb, you won’t find a lie here and if that was an honest question then this thread is far above your understanding.

Here’s a clue: in the real world, dog whistles do not work by magic. There is an unseen principle at work, it has to do with the frequency of sound. The upshot is that people can not hear it, but there is in fact a very loud sound made by the person blowing the whistle that is picked up from quite a distance by critters attuned to that sound.

That is a metaphore, not a great one but a good one.

Just like the sound, there are lies that one not paying attention will not see, but for critters who live in that spectrum they are picked up clearly and convey a story theme based on dark fears, deep envy, and an infamous supreme ruler.

The ad has nothing to do with oil, taxes, or Obama’s leadership acumen.

Whether or not we agree that there are racist tones in the ad, I think we can all agree that the ads McCain has been putting out are well, retarded. I think we can also agree that his campaign is being run miserably.

I thought he was going to run a clean campaign, like Obama has? It looks like he has nothing good to say about himself or his record or his party.

Which speaks volumes.

Anyway, I can’t wait to see these two go toe to toe in a debate. Anyone know when the first one is?

And just out of curiosity, does anyone know what’s up with McCain’s cheeks? It looks like he’s storing two tennis balls in his mouth?

You’re being played. shcb simply chooses not to admit to seeing the racism here, he can see it. Remeber that you can lead a horse to water.. or in this case, you can lead an ass to water, but if it means he has to admit he’s thirsty then he won’t drink.

shcb, That’s a good question about Oprah. The stereotype presented about the archetypical absolute ruler might work for Oprah, but for the rest the ad would have to be tweaked to adjust it from the “uppity black man” stereotype to fit the “angry black woman” stereotype or whatever McCain thinks would slander Oprah best. Certainly it could be done.

The difference between unfair attacks on McCain vs. unfair attacks on Obama is that McCain is being attacked with openly with words e.g. “senile McBush” whereas the attack as exemplified by this video on Obama (approved by McCain himself) makes use of powerfully primal compellation of images and sounds that elicit strong emotional responses.

But why waste my time talking to you, you choose to not get it so you can sit back and submit bait comments.

Just so you know shcb, domestic drilling will not lower your price of gas.

You sound like an addict who needs more more more. Take it from me, we have the second most oil desposits in the world, and our gas is about the same as yours. Same with all oil producing nations, gas is expensive everywhere. It’s the new reality and more drilling will not change that. Did you see Exon’s new record-breaking quarterly profits today, something like 12 billion in 3 months? They don’t want lower oil prices, they’re getting used to these profits and the price can stay high as far as they’re concerned.

The real way to lower your gas bill (and get off your addiction) is to use less of it, by using alternative energy sources (natural gas, wind, solar, hydrogen, hydro-electric, nuclear).

A really good book out there called, “Stupid to the Last Drop”. You should check it out.

I really don’t watch political adds much, it’s hard to avoid them of course but I tend to ignore them, so I don’t know what McCain, or Obama for that matter is putting out there. It’s pretty predictable that both sides will get nasty before this is over. But saying this add is racist or dishonest is rather silly.

Of course NL we can use less or make more to change the balance of supply and demand. Renewable sources for the most part are limited in the amount that can be used until we can store large amounts of electricity and for the most part are only useful in producing electricity, not running cars (unless you are using electric cars with limited range and all the other problems). Petroleum is simply the best source of power we have right now and will be for the next few decades. You’re right we have lots of it between our two countries, we just need to drill and refine it.

That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t continue looking for the next form of energy just as they were looking for the next form of energy as the whale oil and wood was running out. No one is saying we shouldn’t find ways of conserving either.

Personally I think our focus should be on storing huge amounts of electricity, then wind and solar, even lighting would be more viable. Right now I think nuclear is probably our best bet.

I’ll put the book on my list, I am trying to learn Dutch in the evenings now so that will take up my reading time for the next few months.

It starts, “HE’S THE BIGGEST CELEBRITY IN THE WORLD!” i.e. that’s how the video at the top of this thread begins.

Yea, isn’t that great! And he got that way because the electorate likes what he has to say – his positions of principles – and not due to some fluffy acting career.

An ad like this should have been launched against Ronald Reagan, or against Governor Arnaaaaald. They are just actors and didn’t really deserve the public’s initial accolades when they wanted to become political; unlike Obama who has earned his recognition through the Senate and work in the Democratic party.

So if Ronald was a celebrity and “good enough” for John McGoo, then Obama is far more “good enough”!

but to answer your question, I didn’t know of him as an actor until he bacame president, and I knew he was governor of California, so that’s right I don’t know a whole lot more about the man than I do of other US presidents. I did sense, to the point of knowing, that he had a mental problem (in a sad way) long before the diagnosis of Alzheimers was revealed, it was apparent in dithering moments (and a certain look in his eyes and feel about the pause) at times during the last year or two of his presidency.
For the record, I haven’t noticed the same symptoms of senility in John McGoo; just the verbal gaffe’s as noted elsewhere.

You should study Reagan a little. He was an interesting man. I think there is a real possibility to you medical prognosis. Being a governor is generally considered being better qualified to be president than being a senator, since the governor is an executive, power to veto etc. Especially presiding over a state as large and diverse as California.

Obama is who he is, he is inexperienced, he has shown that with many of his statements, he is he is every bit as black as Halle Berry, he is young, good looking, very liberal. He has been hanging out with some American haters over the last twenty years and he doesn’t seem very patriotic. If that is that you want in a president, or you can overlook some of those items that I would consider flaws, another person may see them as attributes, then vote for him. But nothing I can see in this add or others McCain is putting out is untrue (the few I have seen).

Back to “het meisje draagt witte sokken” “the girl has white socks” or something to that effect.

What makes you think he’s not very patriotic? Why would someone run for president of their country, if they didn’t love it? Why would someone spend their entire life making their country a better place, by working in community centres and churches, if they didn’t love it?

I think your view is the extreme right-wing view. I mean, did you see the troops flocking to Obama in Iraq? They were swarming him like I’ve never seen before. So, if all the soldiers love him, obviously they don’t question his love for his country.

Is it the flag pin thing? I hope not, because that’s just really, really, pathetic. Plus, McCain hasn’t been wearing one either. So he must not love his country either then.

We are discussing other policy issues of Obama, taxes, energy, the future role of the military of Iraq etc. The only people who seem fixated with race are liberals. We don’t give a shit if he’s white or purple, we don’t like his views and policy. Look, the racists in our party aren’t going to vote for a black man anymore than the racists in your party are going to vote for a white man, we both already have those votes.

When we say he isn’t very patriotic we are usually referring to the people he has surrounded himself with most of his adult life. The lapel pin is superficial but important just as John Kerry throwing someone else’s metals over the fence was important to understanding the character of the man. People like Ayres, Wright, and Obama may love this country because of what it gives them but the difference between conservatives and liberals is for the most part conservatives are proud of and believe in the institutions and ideals that have made America what it is. For instance conservatives believe in the free market and believe if you just let it go it will for the most part regulate itself, which is sort of the definition of a free market. Liberals like the money and toys the free market affords them, but want to control it so they can force it to be more fair. But of course then it isn’t a free market any more. So our patriotism isn’t just for the flag it is for what the flag represents, all the little bits and pieces. I love all three of my daughters, the oldest is more my friend, I love the youngest the most and I tolerate the middle one. Do I love all my daughters? Yes. Do I love them all equal? No. Obama may love this country, he just doesn’t love it as much as Reagan or McCain. He is less patriotic.

For as long as I’ve been able to vote Republicans have been running these childish campaigns. Not that I’m totally sold on Democrats either. If the Republican campaign reminds me of an obnoxious 7th grader, the Democratic campaign reminds me of an insecure 9th grader.

But isn’t the current economic crisis in your country the result of the free market not regulating itslef. What about Worldcom, Enron… and all the rest? I think a little regulation is required in order to avoid these things.

Just becuase you say he is less patriotic does not make it so.

Some would argue sending your young men and women into battle over lies is pretty unpatriotic. Screwing them over when they get home is pretty unpatriotic. Pissing on the constitution is pretty unpatriotic. Representing big oil and not the American people is pretty unpatriotic.

Some would also argue that stiffing 1st responders of medical care despite their selfless actions is damn unpatriotic too:

But nearly seven years later, not only is there no guaranteed comprehensive medical treatment program, but the Bush administration consistently has delayed and blocked efforts and cut funding for Sept. 11-related health care.

Steve first, the reason the ads seem like they are written by a jr high student isn’t because they were written by one, but because they were written for 9th graders. Now many voters are intelligent and accomplished in other areas but are not very politically sophisticated. People who keep up on politics have made up their minds long before the ads start, or they use voting records or that sort of thing to make their decisions.

I don’t hate Obama, I disagree with his views and don’t think he has the experience. I’m also not impressed with his off the cuff remarks, lending credence to his inexperience.(he said recently that if we keep our tires properly inflated we won’t need to drill for more oil). I have given many examples of how I disagree with his proposed policy changes, increasing taxes, arbitrary deadlines for troop withdrawal, mandatory volunteerism, etc. All these items are real issues, what do you mean we don’t have any real argument?

NL, yes this current economic downturn is the markets correcting themselves. Partly because that is what markets do, and partly correcting for excesses of government intrusion. Isn’t Enron gone? That is how market economies correct themselves. Joseph Schumpeter called it the creative destruction of capitalism. The mortgage problems we are having now are because of the government forcing lending institutions to give home loans to under qualified individuals. Some regulation is needed, but less is better than more

Just because you say he is less patriotic does not make it so.

It is a subjective scale to be sure but Iwill stand by my statements

Some would argue sending your young men and women into battle over lies is pretty unpatriotic. Screwing them over when they get home is pretty unpatriotic. Pissing on the constitution is pretty unpatriotic. Representing big oil and not the American people is pretty unpatriotic.

I don’t agree because none of those statements are true. But even if they were it wouldn’t necessarily mean the people in charge were patriotic or not patriotic. Those items could be because of incompetence, crookedness, covering one’s ass, many things. Patriotism is something in your heart, as well as in your mind. It is not only loving ones country, but loving it above all others.

Now I don’t think Obama hates this country like Ayres or Wright, it’s just mater of scale.

On an issues related note Steve, I do agree with Obama that we need to increase the size of our military by almost double digits to continue the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, he didn’t mention Iran but that would be the most obvious next target. We would definitely need those extra troops and equipment he is promising for that operation.

Enk, NL etc. – finally, the alternative energy source the world has waited for is all but here now:

“This is a major discovery with enormous implications for the future prosperity of humankind,” said Barber, the Ernst Chain Professor of Biochemistry at Imperial College London.

…

Nocera hopes that within 10 years, homeowners will be able to power their homes in daylight through photovoltaic cells, while using excess solar energy to produce hydrogen and oxygen to power their own household fuel cell. Electricity-by-wire from a central source could be a thing of the past.

Well Steve said we don’t have a real argument, I’m just pointing out we have lots of real arguments, some things we agree with Obama, some things we don’t, but we’re not bringing up race, Obama and his supporters are. “my mother was a typical white woman”. I agree with him we should increase the size of the military, I don’t agree with him that we should increase the scope of government involvement in the faith based charities. I wasn’t a fan of this idea when George Bush proposed it and I’m still not a fan of it. Evidentially people here were for at least some of Bush’s ideas since I haven’t heard anyone criticizing Obama for these proposals. See, real issues.

That link doesn’t seem to work. It would be great if that would work. Does the article say how many days or weeks of electricity can be stored in the hydrogen for those times when the sun doesn’t shine or is overcast when only limited sun is available? Can enough hydrogen be produced to power the home at night? Do they use batteries?

“In a revolutionary leap that could transform solar power from a marginal, boutique alternative into a mainstream energy source, MIT researchers have overcome a major barrier to large-scale solar power: storing energy for use when the sun doesn’t shine.

Until now, solar power has been a daytime-only energy source, because storing extra solar energy for later use is prohibitively expensive and grossly inefficient. With today’s announcement, MIT researchers have hit upon a simple, inexpensive, highly efficient process for storing solar energy.

Requiring nothing but abundant, non-toxic natural materials, this discovery could unlock the most potent, carbon-free energy source of all: the sun. “This is the nirvana of what we’ve been talking about for years,” said MIT’s Daniel Nocera, the Henry Dreyfus Professor of Energy at MIT and senior author of a paper describing the work in the July 31 issue of Science. “Solar power has always been a limited, far-off solution. Now we can seriously think about solar power as unlimited and soon.”

Inspired by the photosynthesis performed by plants, Nocera and Matthew Kanan, a postdoctoral fellow in Nocera’s lab, have developed an unprecedented process that will allow the sun’s energy to be used to split water into hydrogen and oxygen gases. Later, the oxygen and hydrogen may be recombined inside a fuel cell, creating carbon-free electricity to power your house or your electric car, day or night.”

Yes, so storing the energy as hydrogen & oxygen seems to be the key breakthrough that others were looking for. As they say above, “a simple, inexpensive, highly efficient process for storing solar energy.”

Your comment could be read in one of two ways. Are you gloating that you knew that was a key requirement, or are you disputing that MIT has found a good way to store the energy?

I don’t know enough of the MIT invention yet to know how practical it is, so I’m gloating:)

You guys somehow think I’m against these new technologies, that I want to hold onto my gas can like an old farmer who plowed with a horse way past the acceptance of the tractor. I’m not, I’ve been an innovator and have not only embraced but helped develop uses of new technologies all my life. We just need to understand there are limitations to technologies. Many times what are now limitations turn to attributes as new things are discovered. Even after the two technologies are combined to form a new breakthrough there are usually limitations to that new technology. Currently solar and wind can only produce about 10% of a grid’s power as I’ve stated many times. With full conventional generation backup required. Well, that’s still 10%, no small amount, but we shouldn’t think we can magically turn that into 80%. If this new breakthrough adds another 5% or 10%, that’s huge! But let’s not get so excited that we think this is going to eliminate our power grid. It may, who knows.

When I was in high school I worked in a Radio Shack store when the first electronic calculator came out, I think it was $100 in 1972 dollars. It had the four basic functions and a percent key (the next year’s model had square root). We were so skeptical of this new technology we would use the calculator in front of the customer when we were figuring their bill to try and sell them one but we would go behind the counter and double check our calculations with an old mechanical adding machine. There is no way I would have predicted 35 years later I would be carrying on a daily conversation with someone in Canada on my own device, they call it a personalcomputer. It is so small you can put it under your desk. Who would have thought that statement, as quaint as it was, that we would all have our own computer, would even in itself be so wrong. Thirty five years later we do our banking, and conversing not on this amazingly small computer but on our phones that we all carry anywhere in the world. Who would have thought we would have phones that we carry all over the world?

There is a good chance that the next energy won’t be one single thing, but a patchwork of different technologies. Solar where there is sun, hydro where there is water (including waves), seaweed biofuel, a different kind of nuclear to fill in the gaps, who knows. But storage is major component.

If you want to feel good about what some salt of the earth types are doing, go to

This is the small Kansas town that was destroyed by a tornado last year, 95% of the buildings were destroyed or heavily damaged (I grew up a hundred miles or so northwest of there). They are rebuilding the town from the ground up to be the “greenest” town in America. Last week I started an inquiry in my company to see if we can offer some of our products to the town, mainly some of the solar control products we make in Europe. So far my request has made it to the VP of marketing (not sure if he is just North America or worldwide) and have gotten some positive responses. Now we may be getting in too late, it’s still very early in the process, but I’m giving it the old college try. Download the master plan and at least skim through it, it’s 175 pages long so reading it in it’s entirety is best left to masochists like me.

So you see I’m not the anti-environmental ogre you make me out to be. I just don’t believe in all the hype of greenhouse gasses and don’t want to spend resources on fixing something that isn’t broken.

You’re probably right about the political maturity of large swaths of the country. When I see these bratty ads, it just makes it that much more likely that I’ll vote for the target of the juvenile insults.

I didn’t read the entire thread…but I want to throw my $0.02 in here after reading the first seven or eight posts. Yes, you don’t have as finely tuned mind as the more liberal folks. Don’t feel bad – there are lots of people who don’t ‘get it’. I had to go to Hampshire College, one of the most liberal institutions on the earth, for about (ahem) 6 years to ‘get it’. Here’s a short translation matrix to grant you some of their insight:

Quote: “Obama’s gonna raise your taxes”
Translation: “Well, I’m gonna raise ‘em too, someone’s gotta pay for the war and cover for the loss of tax revenues in this shitty economy. Did I mention that I don’t like black people”

Quote: “Obama’s a celebrity”
Translation: “Of course he’s a celebrity; just like Brittney and Paris, except he’s black. And I don’t like black people”

Quote: “My name is John McCain, and I approve this message”
Translation: “My name is John McCain, and I do not like black people”

This can get you started on the translation part. To really expand your mind, start reading more bumper stickers and buying into them. Then, repeat the bumper-sticker sayings in the midst of a political conversation and pretend that you’ve said something really insightful and profound (my recent favorite is ‘tax cuts for the rich’). The more vehemently and emotionally you repeat these sayings, the more your opponents will take you seriously. If you haven’t made up your mind on other sensitive issues (e.g. abortion), you can also use this paragraph to get you into on side or the other. With practice, you’ll start to get it.

Nancy P was on George Stephanopoulos’ show this weekend, George asked her about not allowing an up or down vote on drilling offshore I believe 9 times (to his credit), she refused to answer. At one point she went into the Obama wants to do this or that, one of the items she mentioned was natural gas, I guess the ninny doesn’t realize you have to poke holes in the ground (drill) for natural gas, just like oil, in fact the best way to tell it is a gas well is there is a big ugly fiberglass tank nearby that the oil wells don’t need.

Ethan,

Well, I suppose if I have to go to my grave never being as smart as a liberal, that’s just a cross I will have to bear. It’s always been a joke in Colorado that the most intellectually liberal place in the state is Boulder, and unless you play football at CU, you are white if you live in Boulder. I will say this, it makes the game easier if you can take any statement made by a conservative, say, “I like strawberry ice cream” and say it is a racial comment. Then impugn the conservative who dares to question the logic that it isn’t a racial comment as stupid.

I was a business partner with a Boulderite for a while and as such was a tolerated outsider to his group of friends, they kept me around for amusement I suppose. It was interesting at first but I tired of the “liberal sip”. You would be at a cocktail party and would state a conservative position, a liberal who was up to the challenge would then say “well there are those that would say…” not having the guts to say he disagreed with you, someone else, usually a woman would make a snide remark that she thought was over your head, the bar’s not that high in their minds, and then came the sip. Almost in unison all the liberals would raise their glasses and take a sip, with just a hint of knowing smile in the corners of their lips.

At one such party my wife hustled me out of there, in the car I admitted I was about to smash one particular woman’s wine glass in her face the next time she did it, my wife’s response was that if I didn’t smash her face she was going to, so she decided it was best we leave before we got blood on our cloths. We got a good chuckle out of it and never went to one of their events again. Life is just too short.

Yeah, I hear you. People on either extreme tend to be equally condescending and smug in their own ways – it’s the sort of that happens when one is so sure that they’re right and everybody else is wrong. Not that I’m trying to tell you that I’ve found a perfect middle ground — I’m just as full of shit as anyone else is. (No, you can’t quote me on that later). The wingnuts are just really easy to make fun of. I couldn’t help it.

And to be fair this group was probably not typical. They were self selected as any group of friends will be and we only saw them in group settings where they could feed off each other. They were all in their mid thirties to early 50’s at the time and at one party with maybe 20 or 30 couples, one other divorced fellow was the only other person there with kids. They were all successful, they all rock climbed and kayaked, just didn’t have time for kids, and that’s fine. But it shows how similar they all were.

Those knowing smiles are not exactly something to be proud of. I don’t hang out with them folks either. The ones I’ve seen have been more to do with “we all know we disagree with his/her crazy talk, but none of us have the courage or care to be bothered to engage in an argument now because we think that person is so deranged he/she will never see the light, or even if they might it is just not worth the trouble to try.” Smug, self-delusional, cowardly and condescending: yes absolutely. But it may also be a failed attempt at being polite and an effort to keep the peace at a particular venue. Your wine glass comment suggests the latter.